Picture Link

We have all of the pictures on a CD but I thought this would be easier to share than uploading them all! Enjoy looking and I'll give a more in depth update tomorrow.

http://www.picturepeople.com/sso/publishconfirm.sso?data=R4cY7La7cfJ8vGxajHjMdB9nnQn1fMRio1%2bgg3IYt42jMhZk4HJdny84eHZe5%2bod

Say a prayer for us... Kale goes back tomorrow working half days and is dreading it! Bless his heart, he is a good hard-worker :)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

We don't need no stinkin' light!

That's right. After one night under the billue light Fletch's levels are back in normal range. He is so happy to be snuggled up in his bed tonight with his brother. We will go back to the doctor tomorrow afternoon to check levels one more time... just to be safe!

We had family pictures tonight with all of the grandparents, Lolly and Pop, Grandma Tonka, and Grammie and Papaw. Overall, success. Taking the pictures was the easy part. Figuring out which ones to purchase was slightly more difficult! I am glad to say we stuck through it and got some wonderful shots. We have them all on a cd and I will upload some of our favorites in my spare time!

My Dad and Stepmom have to leave tomorrow. They have been a huge help. It is always nice to have your Daddy around. I will be checking his suitcases in the morning to make sure he isn't packin' any kid with him. I can't wait until Thanksgiving when the boys can see their Papaw again. Hopefully the time will fly by.

-Stephanie

Under the Light

Hey everyone! Well, Kale and I have been parents for four whole days. All I can say is it has been GREAT :) The boys sleep so well and they are such good babies. I know, I know, it can all change in the blink of an eye... but for now we are pretty thankful. Anderson is our "eater." He gobbles up his bottles in no time. Fletcher on the other hand, is more of the type to take his time. We have to burp him a lot more often to make sure his belly doesn't get upset. Both boys are keeping their eyes open more. I love to just sit and look at them with their big eyes. BEAUTIFUL.

We had our first doctor appointment today. They did so good on their car ride and looked so cute bundled up in their car seats. They didn't even cry when I had to get them naked to be examined. I did keep them snuggled on the table though.

The doctor's office is in the same clinic that Dorothy, their "Lolly", works in. She got to take them and show them off to her friends. Both boys have lost weight, as expected for new babies, but are still in the healthy range. Fletcher's bilirubin count was slightly high so he has to go under the light for a few days. I hate not being able to hold him but I know he will only get better faster if I leave him under the light like I'm supposed to. We go back to the doctor tomorrow to see if tonight's efforts "under the light" helped any. Fingers crossed we get great news!

Lucy is quite fond of the boys. She is a little protective of them. She keeps standing on her hind legs and watching Fletch under his light. Makin' sure he is okay! Daphne is pretty clueless. She knows the boys are here but doesn't really pay much attention to them. Last night she tried to jump up on my lap and nearly killed me. Of course she didn't mean to, but it hurt so bad when she landed on my stitches!

I am healing slowly but steadily. With each day I feel better. I am so happy that my doctor was on call the day we had the boys. Not just because he is "my doctor" but also because I got to have MY nurse. I know Jennifer did a great job "sewing me up!" Today I noticed I am beginning to have a bellybutton again! We tried to go to Gap today and I almost didn't make it. Took too much out of me! Tomorrow we have family pictures so I need to rest up for another outing! We will post pictures of our little family as soon as we can.

Thanks for all the well wishes. We can't wait until we can bring the boys to church and show them off. Thanks to everyone who has come by to visit them. If you haven't been by feel free to call and come on out. Kale and Anderson are dozing on the couch so I guess I'll go get ready for bed too. Midnight will be here soon and it will be time to feed the boys. See everyone soon.

-Stephanie

Pictures! Pictures! Pictures!

We have uploaded the pictures of the boys and everybody at the hospital. Go to http://picasaweb.google.com/KFarmer3rd to see the boys first few days!

Our Little Men

MY BOYS

FLETCHER and ANDERSON

Well everyone, what a day this has been. Yesterday we got up, took our showers, and decided to go ahead and swing by the hospital to get things checked out. I had been having pretty steady contractions since Friday evening and since my doctor was on call for Saturday I wanted to just see if it was amounting to anything. We didn't grab car seats or bags, we really thought we were just going to be sent home. In our minds it was a "better safe than sorry" trip.I was admitted at 7:30 and was watched on the monitors until around 11:30. At 11:30 when the doctor checked me, I had begun to dilate! The decision was made by 11:40 and c-section was scheduled for 1 o'clock. It all happened VERY quickly :) Kale's mom was at a soccer game, my mom was grocery shopping, Kale's dad was at the Razorback game with the boy scout troop, and my dad was putting out corn for the deer... in HOUSTON. Once we knew for sure it was going to be at 1:30 we called everyone as quick as we could. Moms made it before I went back to surgery. Carrie and Mamie also stopped by to see us. I got to see all of my siblings and then back we went.

Surgery went great. It was the strangest feeling in the world. I could feel everything they were doing, but there was no pain... just pressure. Fletcher entered the world butt first and Anderson came out feet first . He was kind enough to pee all over the doctor and the nurses. I can understand though... it was a pretty traumatic experience!

Fletcher was born at 2:04 and was 19.5 inches long, weighing 5# 12oz. Anderson was born at 2:06 and was 20 inches long, weighing 6# 3oz. Neither boy is on any support and they are eating like champs.

We let them sleep with us last night and they woke up twice. I didn't even know the first time because Kale had taken care of it so quickly! I slept pretty good. I am a little sore, but that is to be expected. Please keep the boys and me in your prayers. I hope to be mobile again soon.

If you want to see them we are at Mercy room 522. Come on by! We will go home tomorrow, Monday. Enjoy your Sunday.

Love, Mommy and Daddy Farmer

Happy Girl

I feel so blessed today. Not only do I have Kale working so hard at work, doing all he can to make a name for himself, he is still willing to come home and voluntarily help me with any of the chores I have not gotten completed in the day. When the Mr. came home he immediately helped finish our bathroom and then tackled the back patio.

This day was especially one to be thankful for. Kale's Aunt Renee and Mamie came by to eat lunch and then help me with the floors and bathrooms. It all looks so great and smells so fresh and clean. They went above and beyond!

All I can say is that I'm one HAPPY GIRL. The house looks amazing, everyone has helped me in so many ways. Thanks to everyone. This process has been ongoing for a few weeks and so many have stepped up to help. Kale and I love you all. My favorite thing that my mom did was weed my entire flowerbed while I was at school. When I came home it was the best surprise!

Not only do we have people cleaning in and out of our house, we have also been blessed by those who have brought us food. I had never thought that being 9 months pregnant would actually effect how much I want to cook, but it sure does! Everything has tasted SOO delicious. And made dinner time so much easier.

Here is a DELICIOUS apple pie recipe given to me by Harriet.

EASY APPLE DAPPLE

3 cups apples, chopped - I used Jonathan's - a mix of varieties is fine
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Chop apples leaving on the peeling. Set aside. Sift flour, baking
soda, and salt. Stir, don't beat, the eggs, sugar, and oil. Add to
flour, soda, and salt mixture. Add vanilla. Fold in apples and nuts.
Bake in a bundt pan at 350 degrees for one hour. It can be baked in
a 9x13 cake pan or two 9x9 pans....just adjust the time. It will
probably take 30 to 40 minutes for the 9x9 pans.

EASY APPLE DAPPLE ICING
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter1/4 cup milk

Boil brown sugar, milk, and butter for 5 minutes. Dribble over cake
while cake is still hot. Pour some in bundt hole, and it will run.
Keep spooning it up on the cake. It is fine to punch holes so that
the icing will penetrate the cake.

Hold On For One More Day (or 14!)

First off... check out my cute pumpkin!

We had another appointment today and everything continues to look great. I am really happy to hear this but I am starting to get uncomfortable. The boys weighed in at 6lbs and 6lbs 1oz. No wonder I can't find a good way to sit, lay, or stand! The doc did give me some medicine to help me sleep. He made me a promise today... he said that he would not make me go past 38 weeks. By sundown on November 3rd I would no longer be pregnant. He also admitted that he understood if his credibility was beginning to diminish. Every visit he says next week or so... I told him that I understood how unpredictable all of this was and I still trust him completely! I'm happy I can still surprise him and keep him on his toes :) If I could get some sleep, which this medicine will help with, and get the boys off my hips, I can totally last two more weeks. I'm not going to lie though, I was kinda hoping he would see the ultrasound results and see how big the gentlemen are, change his mind about making me wait and tell me to come in on Saturday! I know he is doing what is best for the boys though.

The house is ready and the boys room is as done as it can be without the rascals here to finish out the pictures in the empty frames.

I can do this. Two more weeks. I may need all the encouragement I can get! I'll continue to try and be as positive as I can. I'm more anxious than ever now that I am not teaching. The dogs and I bounce from bed to chair to couch and back to bed throughout the day. I don't know what Daphne is going to do when I don't have this belly for her to use as a pillow!

Kale is grilling steaks, and good food always makes a girl feel better.

-Stephanie

Worth a Giggle

So when we went to the doc on Wednesday they hooked me up to the non-stress test. This monitors the boys heartbeats, movement, and any uterine activity I may be having. All was well, but it was quite a job to get the process going. Normally a lovely prego lady will have two straps on her, one for the kiddo and one for the UA. Well, this prego had many! I had to have one for each boy, the UA, and more to keep them from rolling off my belly. That's right I'm so round they just kept popping off. This picture makes me look ENORMOUS, but actually... I think I just really am that big :)

I was told by MANY people today how much it looked like I had "dropped." We will see. Sunday is a good day for the mom-in-law and Wednesday would be a cool birth date, 10-20-2010. The doc is on call on the 23rd so I'm shooting for one of those three days! Sometimes it is nice to pretend you have control.

Today was my last day at work. Bittersweet. The kids were on a field trip so I was able to stay behind and tie up any lose strings before my grand departure. It all worked out well and I got to see all of my friends before I left. Here is another unflattering picture of my ankle as I left this afternoon. Remember that I wasn't even on my feet today... just doing paperwork. This is one of the reasons I will not be returning on Monday. The doc isn't too keen on fat feet!

Well, the kids are moving something fierce tonight so I'm going to go attempt to lay down. I have a feeling this is going to be a couch sleeping evening, at least we have a comfy couch.

I hope everyone has a good weekend. Enjoy the craft fairs. Be careful though, those people can be crazy!

-Stephanie

Magenta

I have the biggest set of mixed emotions going on right now! Our doc visit went great. As usual he was so happy with how everything is going. Blood pressure was great, gained 2lbs, and haven't had any contractions. He did say that he would be very surprised if I was still pregnant ten days from now. (This is where the emotions go crazy.) My response to him, "That's slightly terrifying!" I went on to explain how you can count to ten on your fingers. That makes it so much more immediate than like a month or 20 days.

After I sputtered out the "t" word I then realized what I had said... and that is not how I feel at all. I'm excited, ready to meet these little guys. I have never been scared, not about becoming a mom, the responsibilities that go with it, or even the whole getting them into the world part... you know, the birthing process. Why be scared? It is all going to happen if I'm ready or not! God has been awesome enough to give us this opportunity and I seriously doubt he is just going to leave us hangin' once they get here.

I do feel anxious at times. Anxious about not knowing if we are going to have a c-section or not. Anxious about them being as healthy as they can be. Anxious about getting the house ready for them. I guess I have always been a bit of an anxious person though, and I'm sure all people feel this way so close to the end. Right?!

My next round of feelings was sadness. The end is in sight and I think that even though I can't breathe laying down and my ankles look like elephant feet. Even though I rotate through 5 outfits every week and feel like a 90 year old when climbing in and out of the car. I AM going to miss it. I love feeling the boys with me all the time. I am never alone. I love talking to them while I'm driving in the car and reaching down and patting them while I walk around the room. I love grabbing Kale's hand and slapping it on my belly when they are flipping around and wrestling. This whole thing has been such a blessing and it is definitely bittersweet to have it coming to an end.

I was told today that Friday will be my last work day. Now I'm sure some of you don't know why in the world this would be a bad thing, but I'm having a tough time with it. I feel like I am giving up too early. I wish I could work up until the end, but I know I need the rest before the gentlemen get here. I not only love the people I work with, but I truly love the kiddos in my class. I believe that every teacher that is teaching for the right reason feels this way. I make a personal investment in each child in my class. I care about them as the little people they are. They are all unique and special in their own ways and I'm going to miss them. I have a great substitute lined up, and I know she will do a great job... it is just hard to let go and trust someone else with MY kids :) I'm a little envious and don't want to share them! She will get them through the best time of the year... Christmas! The great thing is I'll be coming back and I am trying to look at this as just a little break. I can always go visit them too.

I have a feeling once my boys are here it will be easier to be home though! It is just going to be tough sitting at home waiting for Fletch and Danger and thinking about what my other 19 kids are doing all day.

Well, there is a peak inside my rainbow of feelings. One of my favorite shows is The Golden Girls. One of my favorite lines from that show was spoken by Blanche when she was feeling much like I am today. She is trying to describe her feelings to Dorothy and describes them as feeling magenta. Here is the quote. It is worth reading.

"Magenta…that’s what I call it when I get that way. All kinds of feelings tumbling all over themselves. Well you know, you’re not quite blue, because you’re not really sad. And although your’e a little bit jealous you wouldn’t say you’re green with envy. And every now and then you realize you’re kind of scared but you’d hardly call yourself yellow…I hate that feeling. Just hate it. And I hate the color magenta. That’s why I named it that. Magenta. No way to really explain it but, fortunately between friends you don’t have to."

Thanks for listening guys.

-Stephanie

Family Pictures

Well, I spent a long time last night uploading pictures and making them look so cute on the blog and then poof! All was lost :( So, here I am to try again.

We had our family pictures taken on Monday night. Usually I HATE having my picture taken. Anyone that knows me knows they need to count when taking a photo... if there is counting I will have an automatic smile by the time they get to 3. You don't count, who knows what you will get! This time it was different though. The pictures weren't about me and Kale, but instead about us and that big round belly. I was so happy to have the opportunity to be taking the pictures of "the belly" that it actually wasn't torturous at all! We are supposed to be getting a link so that y'all can view all of the pictures online. As soon as they send it to us I will post it on here. Until then, here are a few of our favorites...

I am about to leave for an ultrasound appointment and then a doctor's appointment after that. I will fill y'all in when I finally return home tonight! Have a good day. I don't know about where you are, but it is BEAUTIFUL out today :)

-Stephanie

34 Weeks Down... ??? To Go!

Today we had our 34 week appointment. The only way I can describe the doctor's reaction today is giddy! He is so excited that things have gone so well, and for so long. Blood pressure is great, babies sounded good, stress test went wonderfully, and I have not had any contractions and have not dilated. Great news is that we are past the point that the boys would need steroids to boost lung development. If they are born now they are in the clear of any known possible complications.

We went ahead and scheduled an appointment for next week and an ultrasound for two weeks. Dr. Pappas did say we may not end up needing that ultrasound! Really... who knows though... The only thing that he was not extremely happy about was the fact that I am losing weight. I have lost 5 pounds in two weeks. I am still eating just as much as before but now the boys are sucking even more out of me! I was told to drink more milk shakes... I guess if I have to I'll do it :) I mean doctor's orders are doctor's orders!

This weekend is the Arkansas vs. A&M game. That just may begin the labor process! I'm so excited. Have a good rest of the week and... GO HOGS!

-Stephanie

Smells of Fall

Fall is an awesome time of year. Winter is by far my favorite, but I do love the sights of the beautiful colored trees and the smell of the crisp cool nights and mornings. I also love the smell of homemade banana bread. I don't know why I associate it with Fall, I eat it year-round! Today, after my nap :), I woke up with a good old fashioned hankerin' for the smell of banana bread... not the taste... just the smell! So, I made some! It smelled so good and was the perfect "Welcome home from work" treat for Kale. I'm sure everyone has their own recipe that they use but here is the delicious one I tried today.

Enjoy!
Cook Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Ingredients:
1 cup butter or margarine
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons soda
4 cups flour
6 large bananas, very ripe, mashed
1 cup finely chopped pecans

Preparation:
Cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Sift dry ingredients together; add to creamed mixture. Stir in bananas and chopped pecans.
Pour banana nut bread batter into 2 well-greased loaf pans; bake at 325° for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. This banana nut bread recipe makes 2 loaves.

Tomorrow are parent teacher conferences. I hope all goes smoothly!
We have a doctor's appointment Wednesday. I'll let y'all know how that goes!

-Stephanie

My BIG boys

Well folks... the boys are tiny giants! Fletcher is currently weighing in at 4lbs 11oz and good old Anderson is 4lbs 13oz. Yes, that is why I look as if I'm going to EXPLODE! Hey, all I can say is I'm so happy they are growing :) Everything else looked great. Fletcher is still breech and Anderson is still lounging across the top of my tummy. They make a nice little T shape! Unless they start working together and both get head down it looks as if we are looking at a c-section. I am trying my hardest not to stress too much over the practicalities of delivery! Instead, I'm just trying to focus on them growing and then magically appearing in my arms! Wouldn't that be nice if that was really how it worked? We have another doctor appointment on Wednesday. Can't wait to hear what he has to say after looking at the ultrasound.

Tonight is our first birthing class. We have one session tonight until 9:30 and then the second session is tomorrow from 8-6! Kale and I are very excited. It will be tiring but we would rather get it all in in one weekend than a span of a week.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. For my local friends and family, enjoy Bikes Blues & BBQ!